Kain
The road stretched endlessly ahead, dark and empty. The towering trees blurred past in a dizzying rush as I pressed my foot against the gas pedal, my grip tightening on the steering wheel until my knuckles turned white.
Dread coiled in my chest, thick and suffocating.
I had to do this. Had to undo it.
The weight of what lay ahead pressed down on me, heavier with each mile.
How was I supposed to tell them?
Tell her.
Celeste.
This wasn't just a wedding. It was a deal,
treaty, a carefully laid-out plan years in the
making. A move on the chessboard that secured our pack's safety and future. And I was supposed to be the king piece in it all.
But I couldn't do it.
Not after her.
Not after Nova.
I had spent years convincing myself I didn't need a mate. That choosing one would be enough. That I could marry Andressa, and it wouldn't matter. That everything would fall into place as it should.
Then Nova looked at me, and everything I thought I knew shattered into dust.
I needed her. Needed to be hers, the same way she was already mine.
The iron gates of Celeste's estate loomed ahead, massive and imposing. The guards barely hesitated before swinging them open at the sight of my car. They knew better than to stop me.
I exhaled sharply as I stepped out, rolling my shoulders, steadying myself. I was walking into a battle, and I knew it.
The house was eerily silent as I marched up the stone steps. My fist collided with the door, the sound echoing into the night. I didn't bother with patience, didn't care about etiquette. She already knew I was here.
A long pause. Then the heavy door creaked open.
Celeste stood there, her silk robe hanging loosely over her frame. Her brown hair wasn't in the styled form I was used to, irritation darkening her features.
I didn't waste time.
"I found my mate."
The words cut through the silence like a blade.
Her expression didn't flicker. Didn't shift. Only the subtle tightening of her lips hinted that she had heard me at all. Then, with a slow, measured breath, she turned and walked inside.
"Come in."
I hesitated for a brief second before stepping inside, the door closing behind me with a quiet click.
Celeste strode across the room, straight to the bar. She poured herself a glass of wine, the red liquid swirling lazily as she twirled the glass in her fingers.
"It's a fine year," she murmured, taking a sip. "We should serve it at your wedding."
I stared at her, my patience already threadbare.
"I found my mate." I repeated, my voice cold, deliberate, emphasizing the word.
She sighed, finally lifting her gaze to meet mine. Then she stretched out a second glass toward me. "I heard you the first time, Kain. I'm not deaf."
I didn't move to take it.
"So I'm calling off the engagement."
She laughed.
The sound was sharp, bitter. Then it grew—rolling into something uncontrollable, something mocking. She laughed until her shoulders shook, until she was wheezing, until it was clear she wasn't just amused—she was angry.
"What's so funny, Mother?" I forced the words through clenched teeth.
She wiped a tear from the corner of her eye, still grinning. "Oh, Kain. My foolish foolish boy. Do you really think it's that simple?"
Her voice dropped into a gruff, mocking imitation of mine.
"Oh, I found my fated mate, so I'm calling off the engagement, screw years of planning, screw the pack's future, screw everything, I'm just going to run off into the sunset with my mate."
My fists curled at my sides.
"You think that's how this works?" She scoffed, shaking her head. "You think duty, responsibility—power—just disappears because the Moon Goddess decided to hand you a mate?"
"I never said I was abandoning my responsibilities as Alpha," I bit out. "There has to be a way. A way to be with my mate and keep the peace."
Celeste sighed, swirling her glass again before setting it down with a quiet clink.
"I've known you since the day you were born, Kain." Her voice was low, sharp. "And I've never heard you sound so stupid."
My jaw clenched tighter.
She stepped forward, her expression cold, calculated. "You think the Silver Fang elders are just going to accept that you're no longer marrying their Alpha's daughter? You think they'll just say, 'Oh well, go be happy, Kain'?"
She snorted, shaking her head.
"We begged for that alliance, for their protection, for their soldiers, and all they asked for in return was you. You, to marry Andressa, to father their next Alpha. It was simple. It was perfect. And now you want to fuck that up?"
Her voice rose with each word, anger unraveling.
"This isn't a negotiation," I growled. "They'll have to respect the bond."
"The bond?" Her voice cracked like a whip.
The glass in her hand shattered against the floor, the red liquid pooling at our feet.
"There is no bond," she spat. "Your father and I weren't mates, but he married me. He made the right choice—for the pack, for the people. He understood that a Luna needed to be worthy of the title." She inhaled sharply, her hands trembling before she curled them into fists. "Be more like him, Kain."
A deep, guttural growl rumbled in my chest.
"I will never be like him."
Celeste's lips parted, but before she could speak, I took a step forward, voice low and deadly.
"He never cared about this pack, so stop painting him as some fucking saint."
Her eyes narrowed into slits.
"She's a nobody, isn't she?" she whispered.
My wolf bristled at the insult.
Celeste exhaled, shaking her head. "I spent years holding this pack together after your father's death. Years making alliances, securing our future, ensuring your future—and you want to throw it all away for some girl?"
She spat the last word like venom.
"She's not just some girl." My voice was lethal, vibrating with restrained fury. "And I am not marrying Andressa, I must be with my mate."
Celeste's lips curled in disgust.
"Oh, that's cute." She sneered. "Tell that to the Silver Fang elders."
"They don't control me," I growled. "You don't control me."
She laughed, a slow, mocking sound.
"I'm calling a meeting with them," I said, voice like stone. "To make them understand why this marriage won't happen."
Celeste stilled.
Her breath came sharper, faster.
"You can't do that." Her voice was lower now, almost desperate. "You'll start a war, Kain—"
She exhaled, shaking her head. "All those years… all that work, and you're willing to destroy it all."
Her hands trembled, her entire body trembling with rage. Then she whispered, voice trembling, "You really are the son of that omege trash."
My vision went black.
One second, she was standing in front of me. The next, I had her pinned against the wall, my hand wrapped around her throat.
Her breath hitched, but she didn't struggle. Didn't flinch.
"Speak to your Alpha like that again," I whispered, my claws pressing against her skin, "and I will kill you, Mother."
Silence.
I released her, stepping back.
She coughed, rubbing her throat, her glare burning into me.
"How dare you," she seethed.
I turned on my heel.
"Kain—don't you dare walk away from me."
I didn't stop.
"You will not speak to the elders."
I didn't turn back.
"You will regret this," she warned.
Maybe.
But not as much as I would regret losing Nova.